Green Onion Pancakes with Tomato-Avocado Salsa

Serve these savory pancakes as part of a brunch buffet, or as an appetizer at your next dinner party!

To make the salsa, combine 1 and 1/2 cups chopped and seeded plum tomato, 1/2 cup finely chopped red onion, 1/2 cup chopped and peeled avocado, 2 tablespoons finely chopped jalapeno pepper, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano, 1/8 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. black pepper, and just a dash of raw sugar in a bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

To make the pancakes, lightly spoon 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour into measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine the flour in a large bowl with 2 teaspoons raw sugar, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/8 tsp. black pepper; set aside.

Make the equivalent of vegan buttermilk by pouring 1 and 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice into a measuring cup, then filling with plain soy milk (such as Silk) to equal 1 and 1/2 cups; let stand for 5 minutes to clabber (sour) the mixture.

Combine the 'buttermilk' with the equivalent of 1 egg using egg replacer (such as Ener-G), then pour the mixture into the flour mixture; stir just until moist. Let stand for 10 minutes, then stir in 1 cup chopped green onions and 1 and 1/2 ounces shredded vegan cheese in place of provolone (I used the vegan mozzarella from Galaxy Foods).

Heat a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat (or use a griddle, if you have one!). Spoon 1/4 cup of batter per pancake onto the skillet; cook them for about 3 minutes on each side. You'll know it's time to flip the pancakes when the tops are covered with little bubbles and the edges are starting to brown. To avoid overcrowding, I made three batches of 4 pancakes at a time.

You'll have 12 pancakes total. Serve 1 pancake with 3 tablespoons of the salsa for a serving of 130 calories.

Cost:
plum tomatoes $1.73
red onion $0.96
avocado $2.00
jalapeno pepper $0.25
fresh oregano $2.49
green onions $1.98